Week in Review: April 6-April 13, 2008

Hello again.

This week was a rest and recovery week for me. Week 4 of 16 on the Coggan/Allen 250w Intermediate plan. Every workout for the week except Saturday called for a Active Recovery pace. Meaning i didn't have to do squat but noodle. So noodle I did. On the IF during the week I noodled all over Columbia. I explored some of the extensive trail network they have here. Very impressive. I managed to get from my office off Guilford Rd to the far end of Columbia to Executive Park Dr by trail only. The going was slow so that worked out out great for the ride intent. I also found a nice road route to Laurel, MD from the office too. Surprisingly I had good legs all week and the hills on that route didn't put the hurt into me.

Going into Saturday I was plenty rested and felt I would have some good legs for the weekly hammerfest to Chesapeake Beach. Unfortunately that turned out to be only half true. Once the heat got turned up on Pax River Rd I found myself working hard to stay up front. I was trying not to do any work or as little as possible, but I got really suspicious when I noticed nobody was coming past to pull through when i eased up. A quick glance back and I saw why. There was no one there. About 8 of us were flying up the road in a breakaway. I was doing pretty well to hold my own with these fellas who had far more hard miles in their legs than I had. As we kept motoring down the road, I eventually had to take a pull. Riding 2nd wheel put me at the cusp of my AT, but I was determined not to blow up just yet. For some reason, and i suspect it was the beer and vodka the night before and the 3 day old donut i scarfed down for breakfast, whenever my HR went past 170 it felt like someone had punched me right in the gut. Breathing was very hard and my kidneys were in a lot of pain too. I don't know what that was about, but it would be my undoing. My legs felt great, but the rest of me was in a world of shit. After another 20 minutes of this, I detached myself from the break and tried to catch some relief before the chase group swept me up. The swept me up and spit me right out. I was done. I turned around and headed back to the car. I was hoping to see some new power numbers from my efforts, but it was not to be. They were average. Which means that my PE and HR were off the hook, but the workload was not that hard. I guess that explains why my legs felt good, but the rest of me was out to lunch. Note to self; lay off the alkyhol the night before a hard ride.

This week is sure to be a ball buster. No days off, some anaerobic work added to the mix and a Cat 3/4 circuit race on Sunday afternoon.


Numbers for the week:

Training

Hours: 5 1/2
Miles: 90

Physical

Weight at the beginning of the week: 216
Weight at the end of the week: 216
Calories Consumed: 17983
Calories Burned: 19750
Net Loss/Gain: -1767 deficit.

I need to step it up here if im to make my weight goals by taper time. Time to layoff the beer and junk food for a little while and step up the easy pace riding. Perhaps some commutes to work will help.

Power

5 sec: 1127 watts (carryover from 3/2)
1 min: 446 watts (carryover from 4/2)
5 min: 355 watts (carryover from 4/2
20 min: 253 watts (carryover from 3/15)

Move along, nothing to see here.

Beer:

New beers tried (and accounted for in the Meal Log)

Delirium Tremens. A nice Belgian Strong Ale. Light in color, very spicy and fruity in taste with a strong hop presence. Not bad at all, but I've had better. Duvel for instance is a better Belgian Strong Ale. I drank it the night before the Saturday ride along with a whole shaker of martini. Big mistake.

Achel Bruin 8. A really good genuine Trappist dark. Those monks sure now how make beer over there. This is an 8% alcohol. The dark amber color and fluffy off white head was equisite. The brew has high carbonation, much like the superior Rochfort Trappist 10. But unfortunately as good as Achel is, it lacks the full flavor experience of the Rochfort Trappist 10. You can tell the 8% abv of this brew. I was buzzing pretty good off of just the one. I would like to find a bottle of the Blond 8 too for a comparison to other Belgian Strong Ales.

One a side note, I managed to get out of the cage four out of the five work days this week. It was nice to get back into the swing of things on the moto. I got the brakes bleed on Sunday and they feel good as new. Good thing to, as I had no pedal on the rear brake. I kind of need that for dealing with stop and go traffic.

Cheers,

FGR